Shahu Chhatrapati, scion of the Kolhapur royal family, has said he chose the Congress for his poll debut as he draws inspiration from his great grandfather Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, a hugely revered figure among all segments of society for his bold social reforms.
The talks about the reunification had already started when Ajit Pawar was alive. In fact, the two parties even contested the civic polls in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad together.
NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has praised the RSS for its dedicated cadre and urged his party to create a similar base committed to progressive ideas. He attributed the NCP's recent electoral setbacks to complacency and a failure to communicate its work for the OBC community. Pawar also emphasized the need for social engineering to address caste tensions and announced that 50% of the tickets for upcoming local body elections will be given to new faces.
'We have given riot-free Maharashtra in our 18-month rule.'
The Maharashtra Congress on Friday said it will welcome an alliance between the Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) if it is in the interest of the state and to keep the 'communal' Bharatiya Janata Party away.
Gandhi slammed the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party over the collapse of the statue of the warrior king at Rajkot fort in Sindhudurg district, and said the party's ideology is not right.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday underlined the necessity of any reservation standing legal scrutiny as he listed key measures undertaken by the state government for the Maratha community.
Following the alleged molestation of two Australian women cricketers in Indore, a Madhya Pradesh minister advises players to inform local authorities when going out due to their popularity in India.
Following the alleged molestation of two Australian women cricketers in Indore, a Madhya Pradesh minister advises players to inform local authorities when going out due to their popularity in India.
People of Maharashtra have always strived to maintain communal harmony, said Pawar.
Earlier attempts by the state governments to introduce the reservation for Marathas have been struck down by courts.
He also said that Chhatrapati Shivaji's life was all about revolting against the atrocities, and the fight for 'swaraj' (self-rule) started by him continues still today.
Celebrating the 26th foundation day of the party, the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party on Tuesday said there was no proposal of reunion with the rival faction, while Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar MP Supriya Sule too avoided making any statement despite the recent buzz over the issue.
They slammed the Union and state governments for the collapse, with Uddhav Thackeray calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's apology as one "smacking of arrogance", while Sharad Pawar said the episode was an example of corruption.
Fadnavis said that there was nothing wrong with the slogan given by Yogi Adityanath and stated that it had been the history of the country.
The anti-encroachment drive at Vishalgad Fort in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district turned violent as a mob hurled stones at police personnel and damaged properties, leading to the registration of cases against 500 people and the arrest of 21 others, police said on Monday.
'I am determined now to celebrate all festivals together.' 'People don't respond much when you try to convince them by talking about principles of secularism etc. But if we revive our shared cultural practices, specially food, we may get a better response.'
'Modi is not assuring the nation that if he gets back to power in 2024 and remains in power till 2029, he will not change the Constitution.'
Calling Maharashtra Governor B S Koshyari an 'Amazon parcel' sent by the Centre, former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, who heads a faction of the Shiv Sena, on Thursday demanded his recall over his recent remarks on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The move came against the backdrop of Turkiye backing Pakistan and its condemnation of India's strikes on terror camps in the neighbouring country and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir under Operation Sindoor.
Addressing a rally in Mhow on Monday, Gandhi said Dalits, backwards and tribals had no rights before Independence, when "only maharajas and rajas enjoyed rights".
Maharashtra cabinet minister Chhagan Bhujbal has demanded a stay on the Kunbi caste certificates issued to Marathas following their latest agitation for reservation and scrapping of the Justice (retired) Sandeep Shinde committee formed over the quota issue.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party head Ajit Pawar on Monday said discussions were underway among the Mahayuti partners to finalise a formula for the new government formation in the state.
He alleged that the MVA allies were refusing to consider the factor of Maratha activist Manoj Jarange.
Sachin Tendulkar and Rekha's tenures in the Rajya Sabha end this month.
Shinde announced that his government is committed to providing reservation to the Maratha community.
'I had told Fadnavisji that I will be with the party till the Lok Sabha election and I will give my 100 per cent to campaign for the BJP. But ultimately I will have to take this decision (to quit the BJP).' 'When I requested him to see this from the point of view of an elder brother, he could not say anything more after that.'
Pawar, who described himself as the national president of the NCP, said employment, economic empowerment of all sections of the society, education, health, implementation of all welfare measures are the priority of the government.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi greeted him on the occasion, NCP's Praful Patel blamed the Congress party's internal culture for Pawar missing the opportunity to occupy the top post in the 1990s.
Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar working president Supriya Sule has said her party, which won just 10 seats in the Maharashtra assembly elections, will introspect over the poll results and pledged to work towards a capable, inclusive and progressive state.
'We wouldn't have had to face all this had our national leaders taken care to select a place for Sindhis and sent us there, instead of sending us all over to settle in places where the locals didn't want us.' 'They could have partitioned Sindh and given us a Sindhi state from its two Hindu-majority districts.' 'Wasn't that the logic of Partition?'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of spreading fear, hatred and violence and said the country can not progress under these circumstances as he asked the government to be compassionate in handling farmers' problems to prevent suicides.
'We know these are mind games Ajit dada is playing, but he (Sharad Pawar) doesn't get swayed by such gestures.'
'If the person is silenced, then everyone else is terrorised and won't speak up.' 'See what happened to Kiran Mane, you will face the same fate.' 'They want to send this message to the world through my example.' 'We have to fight this and show that they cannot throttle everyone.'
Why was it so easy for students to get a college degree? asks Geetanjali Krishna.
'These frequent political visits to the governor's residence show the state and the office of the governor in bad light.'
'Not many know I am a Rajput from Jodhpur.' 'My ancestors shifted to Kolhapur as my great grandfather and grandfather were both engineers.' 'They were called by Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj to build the city of Kolhapur.'
'Let reservations be decided on the basis of the economic status of a family or person.' 'Give 30 per cent reservations to those whose yearly income is below Rs 200,000, and the remaining 19 per cent to those whose family's annual income is between Rs 200,000 and Rs 400,000.'
'Now, it feels like the darkness has descended again.'
Major political parties in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday ensured victory for all their candidates despite cross voting in Rajya Sabha biennial polls in which senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal emerged triumphant against the Bharatiya Janata Party-backed Independent socialite Preeti Mahapatra.
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